There is a forever increasing demand for outdoor “street furniture” such as street lamps, cameras and closed circuit television cameras on today's streets. All such street furniture requires power to run. The devices generally sit at the top of large columns that are linked under the ground to the national grid.
There are a number of systems known that allow assembly of solar or photovoltaic panels to the columns of existing street furniture to provide supplemental power to run the device.
US 2010029268A, for example, discloses a retrofit system comprising the integration of a solar collector to a street lamp.
WO10050993A discloses a solar-powered lighting system that includes a flexible panel of photovoltaic laminate applied to the outside surface of a light pole.
US2009211621A discloses a flexible magnetically attached solar electric collector sheet system that comprises a thin film that wraps around the column of the street furniture.
WO11013063A discloses a photovoltaic generator mountable on a street light pole.
The present invention aims to provide an improved photovoltaic panel system for assembly to an outdoor column which is ergonomic in design, modular in structure and has features of connection that are protected from the outdoor elements.
The design of the present invention is intended to be discrete and empathetic to urban surroundings while also meeting the necessary criteria for safety and robustness.
The modular nature of the design allows for system to be retrofitted to columns of any length.
The connection mechanism allows for the system to be retrofitted to columns of different, or uneven, width.
The abutment of each panel section of the assembly is such as to protect the connecting mechanism from the outdoor elements.